Federal Express (FedEx) - poor service experiences

Complaints.com received the following consumer message on August 25, 2002:

From:

RE: Federal Express (FedEx) - poor service experiences

Please forward my complaint to Federal Express Corporation Executive , Shirlee M. Clark , in charge of , Business and Financial News, Executive Interviews , e-mail address , Email User

Or:

Fed Ex Express - U.S. Manager , Sandra Munoz , at e-mail address Email User

If you are unable to get through to either one of these , please contact me as i have more i will gladly send you.

Thank You!

Laurie Kinney,

I am writing in regards to Federal Express Corporation and the events which began on 04/12/2002.

I realize that this is rather lengthy , but it was the only way in which i could describe the event's which took place accurately and correctly which i realize is important in situations such as this , i have tried several different avenues in an attempt to settle this matter directly with the company without results , and i truly hope that someone will be willing to take a few minutes of their time to read this.

In the attachments you will find copies of the Federal Express on line tracking for all three of the tracking numbers concerning this complaint , tracking # 821092849460 , is for the delivery of the C.O.D. shipment from Hammond , LA , to the recipient in Newton , CT.

Tracking # 821094932449 is for the delivery of the C.O.D. payment form the recipient in Newton , CT , to us in Hammond , La.

You will find two attachments for each of these tracking numbers , the attachment's marked before show the original tracking information , the attachment's marked after show the changes which Federal Express made to the tracking information immediately following our first complaint to them.

In addition you will find an attachment marked # 471605499432-after , this is for the actual C.O.D. delivery to us , the attachment shows this number as being non existent , the information concerning this tracking number was changed at the same time as the others ,unfortunately i did not get the tracking information before it was changed , but i do have the original package it was received in , which has the Fed ex sticker showing all of the shipping information , including our name , address , and the tracking number that the on line tracking states does not exist.

On 04/12/2002 , we shipped a package , from Hammond , LA to Newton , CT ,containing two diamond rings , C.O.D , via , Federal Express , at the recipients specific request , C.O.D. charges were in the amount of $5888.00 , as we took the cost of the money orders she stated she had purchased for the transaction off of the agreed upon purchase price , for the rings.

Although it had not been our intention to send this shipment C.O.D. , when the recipient contacted us and requested that we ship this way , we felt comfortable enough with the arrangements to agree , as we had been receiving C.O.D. shipments for years and felt it was safe.

Fed Ex picked the package up at our place of business on 04/12/2002, the driver asked us the value of the contents , he was told that it was $5888.00 , he said ok , wrote it down , and told us we would be billed through our Fed Ex account , we then asked how long the payment from the C.O.D. would take to arrive and were told approximately three days , he handed us the C.O.D. slip and left , with the package.

Although we did not realize it at the time he gave us the C.O.D. Air bill , the copy we were given was the Fed Ex retrieval copy not the recipients copy as it should have been , the Fed Ex retrieval copy is blank on the back and there are no C.O.D. terms and conditions on it , Susan Pashby at Fed Ex Executive claims was Faxed a copy of this in April , 2002.

I would like to clarify that while this states C.O.D. Air bill it does not state shipping charges , insurance , or declared value , that it billed to your Fed ex account , the only charges shown are the charges for the actual C.O.D. shipment to be paid by the recipient.

Our account with Fed ex for shipping was opened on 04/11/2002 , this package is the first one we have ever shipped through Fed Ex , although we have received C.O.D. packages via Fed Ex for years through our supplier and are very familiar with the way C.O.D. is required to be handled , we had never shipped anything C.O.D. via Fed Ex before.

The package was delivered to the recipient in Newton , CT , on 04/13/2002, at 8:56 A.M. according to the on line tracking # 821092849460.

On line tracking for the C.O.D. payment return , tracking # 821094932449 stated payment received at 8:56 A.M. return shipping , standard letter ,delivery location , Hammond , LA.

This information is false, Federal Express knowingly entered this information into their on line tracking system with the full knowledge of this at the time it was entered.

The C.O.D. was delivered on 04/13/2002, to Ruth Todice in Newton, CT, but the C.O.D. payment was not delivered or returned to us, nor was it ever collected , according to the supervisor of their Danbury office , the driver delivering the package allowed Ruth Todice to open the package and go through the contents prior to payment , it was then literally thrown not re packed back in to the package and returned to the Danbury office, where it was held for four day's without our knowledge.

C.O.D. tracking # 821092849460-after in the attachment shows , Delivered -C.O.D. Payment Received on 04/13/2002 , 8:56 A.M. , it then shows , shipment refused by recipient on 04/13/2002 , at 9:15 A.M. and package returned to shipper on 04/15/2002.

For the first three days after the package had been delivered the on line tracking information for tracking # 821094932449 C.O.D. payment return showed , shipping date 04/13/2002 , delivery location Hammond , LA , service type standard letter , a copy of these tracking results is in the attachment under # 821094932449-before , not once during the first three days did this information change.

Even though Federal Expresses C.O.D. tracking # 821092849460 for delivery to Newton CT shows , shipment refused by recipient on 04/13/2002 , at 9:15 A.M. , you will find this under , # 821092849460-after in the attachment.

On line tracking for # 821094932449 now states , not found , No scan record for the following shipments has been received by our system yet , # 821094932449-after in the attachment.

When the tracking information had not changed for the first three days we thought this was due to the fact that it was being sent standard letter , we simply assumed it was not scanned in the same manner as a package , we did not worry about it until the fourth day as the Fed Ex driver had told us at the time he picked the package up that it normally took three day's for the C.O.D. return.

On the fourth day , we checked the tracking again , the information remained the same , at this point we called customer service to enquire as to why the information had not changed and the C.O.D. return payment had not yet arrived.

When we called customer service we were placed on hold by their Danbury office , at that point the phone was placed on speaker as my husband was in the middle of a repair and needed both hand's ,

When customer service answered the phone , the line remained on speaker , my husband enquired about the C.O.D. return , customer service stated that the package had been delivered , the recipient had opened the package , but the C.O.D. charges had not been collected ,when he questioned the package being opened and asked where our package was the woman at customer service stated he would not understand , at this point my husband demanded to speak with her supervisor.

After waiting several minutes on hold again, her supervisor at the Danbury Fed ex location answered the phone, he stated that while the package had been delivered and opened by the recipient the C.O.D. charges had not been paid and the package had been refused by Ruth Todice , the driver had then returned the package to their Danbury office.

When we made the statement that opening a C.O.D. without collecting the charges was illegal he replied that fraud was illegal as well , at this point the Danbury supervisor stated that when the driver had arrived , Ruth Todice had immediately told him the rings were not real and demanded he hand over the package for her to inspect the rings or she would call the police , he stated the driver was scared and did as she demanded.

We questioned him as to why the driver would become scared when threatened with the police as he was only delivering the package , he himself had done nothing wrong if the allegations were in fact true , we also stated that if Fed ex had suspected this was true they should have immediately called the authorities themselves.

Fed ex service guide states on page 7 of 37 under Collect On Delivery (C.O.D.) Service that , Performance of the C.O.D. service does not make us the agent of the shipper for any purpose whatsoever , according to the service guide the driver could not be held liable for the contents of the package , something he surely must have been aware of at the time , and he certainly had no authority to allow Ruth Todice unsupervised access for nearly 30 minutes to a C.O.D. package they had not collected payment on , which Fed ex who he represented at the time had made a contractual agreement with us to collect payment on before delivery , yet this is exactly what the supervisor stated the driver had done.

After the supervisor refused to address our questions , my husband demanded to know where the package was , the Danbury supervisor stated that he was there with security and the package was there with them and had been for the past four day's , we asked why they had the package rather than returning it and he stated that due to the fact that the package was under investigation he had not decided what he was going to do with it , when we questioned his use of the term under investigation he stated that Ruth Todice had told them she called the police, but no one had ever shown up.

Please keep in mind that the above conversation was on speaker phone in addition we have three notarized statements attesting to the above conversation and what was heard , the notarized statements were obtained due to legal advice concerning slander in this matter.

At that point my husband became extremely angry , he told the supervisor that we had the certificates for both rings (the stones in them) that we wanted them returned immediately, and that the stones had better match the certificates we had for them , at this point the supervisor became very nervous and told us he would call back in ten minutes.

Less than ten minutes later he called back , he told us that the package had already been scanned and placed on the truck for delivery , he then gave us the tracking number # 471605499432 for the package.

We checked the on line tracking for the number he had given us , it showed the package had been scanned and placed on the truck at Fed ex shipping location Danbury CT , delivery location Covington , LA , service type overnight express , delivery date , 04/15/2002 this information was false as well.

Fed ex service guide states that refused C.O.D. packages shall be returned to shipper no later than three days from refusal.

At the time Fed ex placed the package on the truck for return shipment to us , it had already been in their possession for four day's the package was returned to us on 04/19/2002 , not two days after shipment , but six days after shipment , via overnight express , original packing , which we have in our possession , tracking # 821092849460-after in the attachment shows under scan activity that on 04/15/2002 the package status was Danbury , CT , it then shows C.O.D. shipment as 05/19/2002 , we actually received the returned C.O.D. on 04/19/2002.

The tracking number for the return C.O.D. shipment was tracking # 471605499432 , not tracking # 821092849460.

Tracking information for # 471605499432 , now states , not found , No scan record for the following shipments has been received by our system yet , tracking # 471605499432-after in the attachment , We have the original shipping with date and tracking number in our possession , which clearly shows this information is false as the package with the above tracking number was delivered to us.

I find it very strange that Fed Ex would claim the package was being held due to fraud yet during the four day's the package was held by them at their Danbury office they never even so much as picked up the phone to call the police , had this actually been fraud the police should have been contacted immediately , instead Fed Ex simply held the package.

When the package arrived we explained the circumstances surrounding the package to the Fed Ex driver delivering it , we questioned the delivery driver at that time about Fed Ex's C.O.D. Delivery policy and were told that opening of a C.O.D. package prior to payment absolutely was not allowed , we asked that he watch us open it as the package was badly torn and held together with tape which he agreed to do , both rings had been thrown into their boxes , their boxes then snapped shut , the larger of the two was visibly damaged as the prongs on the setting were bent and the center stone was chipped in three places , we did not discover that the smaller of the two rings was damaged until later when we held it up to the light and saw the stone was cracked completely through the center of it , neither stone was the one originally sent.

We then contacted Federal Expresses Corp office , where we were very rudely treated and questioned as to how we had gotten through to them , we were told that customers were not allowed to contact them regarding claims or shipments and we would have to contact customer service through the web site , we patiently explained to the woman (who did not give her name) that we had done this , but received no response , we went on to explain that our C.O.D. Package had been compromised , she asked what we meant by compromised and we explained the package was opened prior to C.O.D. charges being paid and the recipient had been allowed to go through the contents which was now worthless , she stated that could not happen as that was not allowed , we told her it did happen , and relayed the information concerning it to her, at this point she became very polite , she took our information and said she would have someone get back to us right away.

Shortly after contacting Fed Ex Corp we were completely locked out of our Fed Ex on line account which conveniently prevented us from accessing our bill concerning the shipment , thus eliminating the possibility of our retrieving any information containing declared value and insurance on the package.

Fed Ex Service guide page 7 of 37 under Collect On Delivery (C.O.D.) Service states ,

C.O.D. transportation charges must be charged to the sender's Fed Ex account number , all information regarding billing is on this , including the declared value , without it there is no way of showing the declared value of the shipment.

Even if Fed Ex allowed us access to the account , i do not think it would matter at this point given all of the false information they have entered into their tracking system concerning this shipment.

We were then contacted by a Federal Express Investigator , who questioned us regarding the package and circumstances surrounding it , he questioned us as to wether or not we had been contacted by the police , to which stated we had not , he told us that Ruth Todice had stated the police were being contacted , but that the police had never contacted Fed Ex either , he questioned us about the rings , the damage done to them , where they came from ect , then stated he would get back with us shortly.

When he called back he stated he had spoken with Fed Ex's legal dept and asked us what we wanted , my husband asked what he meant by this and he stated that normally when someone contacted them with a situation such as this they had a pretty good idea what type of settlement they were looking for wether it be the merchandise repaired , replaced or paid for , we told him we wanted the amount of the C.O.D. bill , he then stated $6000.00 and we stated no $5888.00 , that was the amount of the C.O.D. bill.

On Friday he called back to state he had gone over everything with the legal dept again , and someone from their corporate office would be in touch with us immediately to discuss settling the matter , he also stated that if we did not hear from them by Monday to call him back , which we did on Tuesday , at that time he told us that Susan Pashby Executive claims would be handling our case.

It was more than a week before we heard from Susan , this went back and forth for nearly 2 months while Susan stalled us at every turn possible , eventually she requested the invoice concerning the ring's , and the original air bill's concerning the Fed Ex delivery , and damages to the ring's asking if they could be repaired , the information was faxed to Susan twice , as she did not receive it the first time , but did receive it the second time.

Several day's after receiving the Fax Susan told us she needed the original invoice from our purchase of the ring's , we explained to Susan that the ring's had been purchased several years prior to being sold to Ruth Todice , that i did not have the original invoices , but i did have the certificates , and the invoices from the sale to Ruth Todice which was what pertained to this matter , not when i had purchased the ring's.

Susan then questioned the fact that the ring's had been sold on line at eBay which i told her yes they had , and she stated she could not accept an invoice from eBay.

Several days later Susan met with her supervisor , we spoke with her later that afternoon regarding our claim , it was at this point that she told us they would not pay the claim , but would be happy to send us a check for $100.00 for damage during shipping , i argued with her about the fact that this was not damage during shipment , it was a breach of contract for C.O.D. shipment and our merchandise had been destroyed due to their sole negligence , she fully agreed with me and blatantly stated that although this was their fault they did not and were not about to pay for it , she stated we could not prove a declared value and even if we did they would not allow more than $500.00 on shipments damaged during delivery , she then told me that should i change my mind they would be more than happy to send the check in the amount of $100.00.

Fed ex service guide , page 16 of 37 under liabilities not assumed states , We will not be liable for, nor will any adjustment, refund or credit of any kind be given as a result of, any loss, damage, delay, misdelivery, non-delivery, misinformation or any failure to provide information, except such as may result from our sole negligence.

I stated to Susan that i would not accept this , i then asked for the name of the driver who had made the delivery and the supervisor we had spoken with on the phone at their Danbury location and was rudely informed by her that if i wanted that information i would have to subpoena it as they would not give it to me.

Although the following may not seem relevant at this point as you continue to read you will find it is very relevant , not only for us , but the company in question as well with regards to their conduct and ethics.

On August , 12 , 2001 , my son Jason , from my first marriage , died he was 14 years and 9 months old to the day , there are no words to describe the devastation which tore through our family i had learned the hard way not to take one moment with my children for granted , because you never know what tomorrow might bring and the ones we love are easily lost.

In March of 2002 we learned my eldest son Shaun who is serving in the Air force , would be leaving , we did not have an exact date as we were not allowed to know , Shaun put in for leave so that we would be able to see each other before he left the only time they could give him for leave was May , 16 through May 28 , at the time we did not have the extra money needed for the three of us , his brother , sister , and myself , to make the trip from Louisiana to Idaho.

After just losing one child , our sole concern was our son and getting to him before he left , in an effort to do this i sold the 2 rings in question on line at an eBay auction , both rings could and should have sold for much more , but selling them for $5888.00 meant the world to me , because we would be able to see Shaun before he left , and that was all that mattered , due to the situation with Fed Ex and the careless regard for what we had entrusted to them the rings could not be re sold once they were finally returned , Shaun left in June 2002 , we never saw each other before he left.

Fed Ex's service guide states quite clearly that C.O.D. delivery constitutes collection of payment prior to recipient receiving the package.

The service guide states , Performance of the C.O.D. service does not make us the agent of the shipper for any purpose whatsoever , which makes the story given us by Fed ex for the opening of the package prior to payment seem more than a little strange.

Fed ex service guide under liabilities not assumed states , We will not be liable for, nor will any adjustment, refund or credit of any kind be given as a result of, any loss, damage, delay, misdelivery, non-delivery, misinformation or any failure to provide information, except such as may result from our sole negligence.

The service guide states under inspection of shipments , We may, at our sole discretion, open and inspect any shipment without notice.

Fed Ex did not open the package they allowed Ruth Todice to open and go through the package without collecting the payment a clear violation of their C.O.D. delivery contract , due to this the stones were compromised and switched , had Fed Ex not broken the C.O.D. contract this could not have happened , this was due to their sole negligence.

Fed Ex knowingly and willingly entered false information into their on line tracking , which is easily verified through their own on line tracking which we have copies of , then changed the tracking information upon our first complaint to them.

Fed ex service guide under Collect On Delivery (C.O.D.) Service states , C.O.D. transportation charges must be charged to the sender's Fed Ex account number , Fed ex immediately locked us out of our account , knowing the C.O.D. air bill was the only way we could show proof of the packages declared value.

Fed Ex readily admits that packages sent C.O.D. are not allowed to be opened prior to collection of the C.O.D. amount , in addition they have stated that this is due to their negligence , yet they blatantly state that while this is their fault they do not and will not pay for their mistake , and there is nothing we can do about it.

Fed Ex refused to accept the invoice from the sale to Ruth Todice , stating they do not accept on line auction invoices , yet the majority of on line auction sales are shipped via Fed ex at this time , no where on their site or in their service guide does it state that on line auction invoices will not be honored , nor does it state that Fed ex at it's sole discretion shall determine which invoices may or may not be used to determine value of shipment.

I have submitted and filed reports with the BBB , Postal Inspector , Attorney General , the UTC , and Consumer affairs , and am actively seeking more at this time.

In addition i am submitting the information contained in this report along with all of the verifying documents to each and every investigative reporter , on line new's source and paper i can find , if this is the manner in which Fed Ex chooses to operate , the public has a right to know , the public also has a right to know about the blatant disregard Fed Ex shows our military personal over seas protecting our country at this time.

The only concern Fed Ex shows is keeping their profits high , which naturally and without question is the same concern with other companies as well , the difference is that Fed Ex does it at the cost of their customers , even when they know they are in the wrong.

A company or corporation acting in this manner is shameful and most certainly without ethics , they simply do as they please and go on , customers are what make their business a success , something Fed Ex seems to have forgotten during their climb to the top , Without customers where would they be?

Fed Ex is responsible for and as such should be held accountable for their neglect concerning this matter.

Thank You,

Laurie Kinney.